Editor's note: I deleted an entire cheese-filled post for the following sentimental, raw post. These are my feelings, real and true—please take that into account.

Today, I released my 9th book. It's been a different type of release for me. Quiet and sedate.

Recent book releases have come with so much pomp and circumstance, streamers and confetti and hours, day, and weeks spent online pimping, sharing and marketing (most of It spent in my robe).

This one is a different though.

WHY?

In early 2012, I wrote a blog post on E.L. James—how whether or not you read or planned to read her books or not, she was living the Mom/Woman/Entrepreneur dream. Basically, if you wanted to put her down, you could go suck it. Subsequently, I was called by Katie Couric's team for my opinion. At the time, I admitted to her producers I always wanted to write a book. They said, "you should do it."

AND BY GOLLY, I did.

In 2014, I published Electrified, a romantic suspense novel. I put my heart and soul into that book. Did it become the next Fifty? NO. But it did serve it's purpose...to make people think about love and the idea that it doesn't always happen conveniently. There was also the seedy environment in which Electrified takes place—a gentleman's club in Sin City. There were themes that were somewhat uncomfortable and among all the glitz and bright lights of the stripper pole was a valuable lesson. It wasn't your typical romance, and for that I got some slack (including being called a religion basher).

Book two of this series, Smoldered, released later that year and I learned about books being labeled NOT SAFE. LISTEN, I don't say this to agitate reviewers...I was simply that stupid and naive back then. A long time reader myself, I pretty much read anything. I didn't have any triggers or unsafe zones when it came to fiction, but these are very real feelings for many real people. Smoldered is an ugly and painful tale about a beautiful couple who eventually finds their happy ending. I came to understand it wasn't for everyone.

Over the year, Big Mike had become a fan favorite in Electrified and Smoldered. It was obvious his story was next, but he was in love with a high-end escort.

I came to realize his story was neither safe nor comforting.

Every few weeks, I'd add a little more to Mike and Lynx's tale. It quickly began to turn into my grittiest story yet. So, I put it off, pushed it aside, and let the dust collect there.

I hate to admit this, but part of this was out of fear. I have a thick skin, and I mean it when I say, readers have their right to their own opinions and feelings (as stated above). BUT I found myself unable to work on Mike's book for a long time, and then I said, "Screw it," and started writing it again.

IT is not pretty.

IT definitely pushes some readers way out of their comfort zone.

IT includes a love affair between a biracial woman and a blue blood white male. IT is forbidden in more ways than one. She's a "working girl" and he's trying to be more than he was born into...

IT is steamy and sensual, raw and grimy, and the ending is just as I always saw it.

I'm proud of the risk I took for these two to have their story.

To all the readers who waited patiently, this book is for you. JUST read the dedication if you don't believe me.

This is why today is without confetti and streamers, but maybe I'll throw some tomorrow.

xoxo,

Rachel

IF you would like to check out any of the books in the Electric Tunnel series, check out their pages:Electrified, Smoldered, Tinged.

What's shaking with you?

As for me, I finally finished Tinged, book 3 in the Electric Tunnel Series (my first series). Big Mike was a fan favorite in the Tunnel books, and this is his book...so I know there will be a few happy readers. It will release early May, so be ready!

Otherwise, I have several other WIP's swimming in my head and a few even typed out on my laptop, so it really depends who takes the strongest hold of me. Betting money is on Emerson & Price

(and that's all I can say about them).

Lately, I've been receiving a lot of questions on the writing process. How it works for me? How to do it best? The only thing I know for certain is the way it works for me, is not the best way for everyone. I've seen a lot of peeps preach, "Do this. Write here. Make sure to get in X number of words every day."

Let me say this: If it doesn't work for ya, it's probably not gonna work for ya.

SOOO, I promise to keep you updated on Em and Price (and whoever else is living in my head).

IF you want to stay more up to date, join my READER's Group. That's where it all goes down!

Happy Easter, Passover, Spring Break - whatever you celebrate.

xoxoxo,

R

p.s. WANT to receive 12 FREE BOOKS? ---> hit that little pink bar at the top of the page and sign up for my newsletter where starting this month (APRIL), I will be offering one free book per month (from other authors)!!!

This week is the 1 year anniversary of Electrified! MARYSE is sharing a never read before excerpt ...a wedding ...that took place in between Electrified and Smoldered. Head over to her blog to read it! P.S. And for all you Asher lovers...lots of him in this special excerpt.

In celebration of the anniversary, I'm giving away a $20 Amazon Gift Card! All you need to do to enter is write a review on one of my books and be subscribed to my newsletter! a Rafflecopter giveaway

I’ve been a little down this week...
After putting a few finishing touches on my latest work-in-progress and getting it ready to send to my editor, a huge let-down washed over me. It is hard to explain, but it happens to me every time I finish a story. There are those long endless days or weeks that all seem to blend together. The days I’ve spent all alone with those characters––in my robe, drinking coffee, eating nothing but snacks and breaking only for Chinese takeout with my family. My brain begins to think like the people I’m writing as I hum the music they’d listen to, and they are very, very real to me. Not in some psychotic sense, but in my mind, the main and side characters come to life, instructing me to put their story on paper.

As a person, I don’t generally squee or eeek or gasp over the people who come to life in my imagination. Perhaps, I’m overly attached and nervous to share. Maybe it is an unhealthy dose of separation anxiety or nerves over whether you––the reader––will accept my characters. Often, they’re flawed, not perfect beings trying to live their lives and fucking up while they do it.

With my latest project, I realized that if I want or need to do one simple thing as a writer, it is to make my readers think and question what they are told to believe.

Starting with my first heroine, Sienna. She’s a religious woman turned stripper––not for kicks, but for freedom and safety from her tyrant of a husband. At one book club, I was called a particular religion basher and asked why I wrote this? I took it in stride, as Sienna is a survivor, my woman of valor who commanded her own destiny, and wasn’t created without the necessary research. When you dig, you find, and that’s what I did. If I made one or two readers question what may be hiding underneath some, a very few, and definitely not all religious sects than I did my job.

Then, there’s Asher, the star of my Electric Tunnel series and Smoldered. He is such a psychological wreck, the product of no parental supervision and a degenerate of the Las Vegas streets who did the best he could. He cannot get his personal life together, and he cheats and acts a fool and tears down homes and ruins relationships when love is right in front of him. Some hate him, won’t read him for his lousy cheating ways. To me, he’s every bit as lovable and broken, and watching him climb out from under the boulders weighing down on top of him makes me fall a little bit harder for him. After all, the notion is not all of us came from the same loving place where we learned to cherish what’s in front of us. Sometimes, men and women need a swift kick in the ass as adults to understand this.

I’m not going to take apart each of my characters. They all have their own distinct issues and hurdles, and writing their journeys, bringing to life their passion and pitfalls––that’s my greatest passion. In my latest––Vérité––I decided to take a different approach. A good guy meets a screwed up, mixed up, train wreck of a girl. I take down stereotypes––not just gender roles, but way more. Creating people who are not what you think they will be, breathing life into them has been my main focus for the past two months, and now I’m sending them to get them ready to share.

I already miss them, hope you love them, and treat them with the same respect I’ve come to have for them. So, it is a bittersweet moment like sending your kid to kindergarten. It’s time to let go, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy.

"I'm never doing that again. EVER!" -- These were my words early yesterday morning as my prices went back to normal after a three-day sale on Electrified.
My friend and fellow author, Susan Ward, replied with skepticism. She didn't believe me––to which I answered, "You're probably right."

Electrified was free for 72 hours. It started out as my way of thanking new readers who may have started with Smoldered or my newest series, Redemption Lane. It turned into 24 frantic hours of me hassling Amazon and Nook to adjust my prices. I know, it was naive on my part to think I could just set my book to free. With Amazon, I must be exclusive to their platform to do so and with Nook, I needed to use a third-party provider to deliver my ebook in order to do so. Neither one would allow me to offer my readers a freebie.

I wasn't going down without a fight as I learned about these policies. I started bombarding Amazon with emails, and I have to say their support people were the BEST!!

I'm not joking. I don't know if I got lucky or what, but they were insanely responsive. They heard my plight, could sense the worry and fear and anxiety jumping off my emails and worked quickly to price match Electrified to FREE. Nook not so much. They kept passing the buck and passing the buck, and finally I waited 3 days to hear back from someone, who said it just wasn't possible. DUH! Good for everyone involved, I'm not a quitter and I found out over the weekend how to get around this policy and set that plan in motion. These are the not-so-glamorous days of independent publishing.

Anyway, the point of this is not to complain, but to say thank you. Not just by offering the sale but from the bottom of my heart. Thank you. For reading and supporting me. And know this -- I will do whatever it takes to keep making you all happy.

CHEESE ALERT --- I know!

And because I love you all so much, I'm part of this giveaway HERE with a number of other authors...hurry up and enter.

Also, I'm going to be giving away a ♥ primo ♥ prize next week for readers. You need to be signed up for my mailing list to receive the details. There is a little tab right there in the sidebar --->

I hope you are all enjoying your reading––whether it be my books or not!

♥ Leave a comment with a great book you are reading, so we can share the wealth! ♥

Just yesterday it was the end of the summer and I was putting the finishing touches on Smoldered. Now––it is almost Christmas Eve, and I'm blown away how quickly the time went.

This has been one hell of a year. From releasing both Electrified and Smoldered to meeting many of you. Cliche', yet so true,

without readers, an author is nothing.

For the last nine days, I've been giving away books on Facebook––on my page––but I'm told that will not be a viable place to touch base after the new year. FB is apparently adding fees and further controls to make connecting more difficult. Many authors and readers are jumping on tsu. I'm not there yet.

I barely have time to keep up with the social media channels I'm currently on let alone new ones––and keep putting out books.

I hope to stay connected on FB, but if that's not possible...I am prepping a new subscription form where you will be able to sign up and receive updates and fun, probably naughty, notes from me. Maybe even teasers?!?! Stay tuned for details.

I adore each and every one of you. Thank you so much for stopping in to say something exciting about the books or to ask me about upcoming releases on FB or here or by email or at a signing.

The elf is hiding and everyone is having twelve days of Christmas or this or that...and I'm editing. And maybe doing a little internet shopping.
But with winter break coming, I thought I would share a few of my holiday reading recs.

Grab any or all of them and enjoy them by the fire or while ignoring your kids or when you're on vacation.

The second book in the Resistance Series. I think I loved the Redemption more. While the Resistance was frisky and fun, this installment is angsty and painful. But oh so, so good. Rochelle is a widow and a single mom. Dex, her late husband's closest friend has been in love with her from afar––since they met. Now, he has his chance, but there are so many misgivings and secrets that their romance is cloaked in twists and turns and more twists. A holy hot mess of a rocker, Dex has a sweet side and it makes this read totally worth it. It is an absolute one sitting read because there's simply no good point to put it down.

I picked this book up one afternoon and didn't put it down. Krystal, a rockstar fugitive, and Devon, an investigative reporter, should stay away from one another, but they don't. And sparks fly. Emotional ones. This is a fabulous contemporary love story with the beauty of old school romance woven through it. A perfect read for someone who is looking for a book without all the erotica. But have no fear...there is still steam and sparks.

Although this is an older read, the next book in the series comes out after Christmas and I LOVED this one. A werewolf and his betrothed carry secrets and as their love unfolds, these secrets become more and more entangled. A perfect paranormal romance, there is beauty and passion. And it is KA––so you know, it's amazing. And, at the time of writing this, it is on sale for 99 cents.

With a sneak peek at the end of Smoldered, I luckily had the chance to read an ARC of this book...and it is on fire. Sexy, sensual, and dreamy Ronan Connolly falls for Holliday Prescott, a contradiction of a woman. Strong yet broken, Holliday refuses the Irish actor's advances until she can't hold out any longer. An affair ensues with many ups and downs, and we are left hanging...I know, I know! It is tough. but it will be worth the wait. This book is a fabulous escape for any romance reader. Debuting on 12/9, it is avail for preorder now.

In case you missed it, my second book, Smoldered, is now LIVE. It is Asher Peterson’s story––Asher, the owner of the Electric Tunnel, the fictitious strip club of my mind and setting of the Electric Tunnel Series.

It may come as no surprise, but I am asked all the time about my personal experience with strip clubs. In fact, I had a chance to chat with Romance at Random about this topic specifically and here is what I said:

…The question I’m asked the most is, “Did you go to strip clubs before, during, or after writing this? Are you going today? Now? Tomorrow?”

Friends ask my husband, extended family members question my mother, readers are extremely curious if I have friends who are strippers, and most of my husband’s gang has offered join me in doing research. Okay, are you ready? Cue Drumroll.

Yes. The answer is yes. I have in fact been to a number of strip clubs before writing Electrified. While the Electric Tunnel doesn’t really exist and all the characters that work there are fictitious, I don’t think it would be wise to write a book about the adult entertainment world without researching it.

I’m not even going to take the fifth…I am here to tell all.

For the record, there were two crazy and wild nights I spent inside the dark and cavernous walls of a strip club long before writing a story about one…Way back when, I was young, carefree, legal, and having a blast at a dance club when someone from my group suggested we go to the latest “adult place” to open. We ended up leaving and going with a semi-famous sports coach, who was out with us, and subsequently we were given the VIP treatment, including secluded tables in the back and use of a limo.

This might have influenced a tiny bit of the adult entertainment culture in Electrified and Smoldered, but a separate visit definitely doesn’t make it into the book. This happened when I was six months pregnant with my first-born and went on a bachelorette weekend in Sin City and found myself hopped up on pregnancy hormones at the all-male strip club. Let’s say, I cut out early that evening; my feet were hurting.

Then, we finally get to the part where I decided to actually create my own adult entertainment empire and a bunch of complex characters residing full-time within its deep purple velour walls. The idea of writing a book was always seated deep within me, and there were a few attempts before Electrified that ended up stuck on some hard drive underneath a pile of junk in my closet. It was late one night, in the bathroom of a posh and exclusive Las Vegas Strip Club when I had my big moment. The brainstorm of the century and I was carrying a purse barely big enough to hold a lipstick, let alone a pen and paper. (I call these napkin––or toilet paper––moments.)

It was way past dark in Sin City; we’d been to dinner and a show before late night cocktails and an evening that never ended…I found myself at the aforementioned adult establishment. I had to pee, and so I went to the ladies room and for whatever reason, one of the dancers was in there, and to say I became fascinated was putting it lightly.

I watched from afar as she moved incredibly graceful through the women’s room, studied her while she studied herself in the mirror …and a story began to come to life in my head. This woman was such a complex creature. A standout on the stage. Sexy, sinful, silky smooth and radiant as she wrapped herself tight around the pole center stage or ran her body along someone during a lap dance in the dim haze of the club floor. But inside the bathroom she was a regular person: a wrinkle here, a scar there, a hair out of place, a tiny tube of lip balm in her hands just like mine. As I watched this stranger’s chest rise and fall with breath in the reflection in the mirror, she became a multi-dimensional being to me and not just a glorious body to envy.

The social worker in me began to wonder what her story was or is and how she came to do what she does. Did she have a family? One that she kept in contact with or saw with regularity? Was she running from something bad? The possibilities pummeled through my brain like a freight train before it became clear, I’d spent too long in the loo...

Over on FB, I've been promising & promising a tiny sneak peek of Smoldered - Book 2 in The Electric Tunnel Series.
Releasing October, 2014 - Smoldered is Asher and Natalie's story. Its a bit grittier than Electrified, considering both the main characters' grew up on and around Vegas nightlife.

It was a gut-wrenching story to write, and I can't wait to share it with all of you...I will be somewhat sad to put it to print, though. Saying goodbye to Asher &Nat will be hard for me, but as they say: "All good things must come to an end." But, not really because there will be another book in the series, Mike's story.

So, here you go --> your first glimpse at Smoldered.

…Right before me was my boss, still wearing his dress pants from the night, his shirt unbuttoned halfway down his chest, showing off a light smattering of blond chest hair and the very edge of his tattoo.

It was a dark navy blue electricity bolt over his chest for his one and only baby, the Electric Tunnel. But, it was a sight to see, and I did enjoy licking it from top to bottom.

In the privacy of his office.

His hair and goatee were equally mussed up from him running his hands through them. Sadly, a behavior I knew all too well, and there was nothing I wanted to do more than dive in and make it even messier.

And, he was wearing motorcycle boots with his suit pants. He was a hot mess of a man––nothing else remotely like him. Even with a layer of expensive, designer clothing on top, he was pure bad boy underneath. He’d never ditch his boots. They were as ingrained in him as his past, which is why I should have been high-tailing it right out of the place. Instead, I stood planted like a palm tree blowing in the wind, waiting for the storm to arrive, stuck in the ground as if there was nothing I could do to stop the blustery weather heading my way, threatening to topple me over.

The guy was a god, and I was nothing more than a stripper, who was smitten with him. Running my hands through my own long hair, I’d left it down with big waves running through it. I had set it in hot rollers on my break for a bachelor party I ran earlier. Yet, now it didn’t seem like enough for Asher. He should get more than the after-effects of my evening at work.

He deserved fresh curls and perfume not mixed with another man’s cologne.

I wanted to be more in his eyes. Hadn’t I always?

In my dreams, I was the prettiest, sexiest, and most darling of his girls. The one he would keep, but I knew that to be a fantasy, which is why I kept firm boundaries when it came to him. Most of the time, at least. This evening, not one of these occasions.

He approached with his usual control and command, wrapped his arm around my neck and pulled me tight against him. Running his nose along my collar, he breathed in my scent, and whispered, “Fuck, Nat, you smell real good. Look so damn beautiful. I want you. Never can get enough.”

I have been hiding in my cave, otherwise known as my backyard or the local coffee shop––writing book 2 of The Electric Tunnel Series.
Why?

Smoldered is coming, October, 2014

Asher Peterson is a self-made man, owner of the Electric Tunnel, Sin City’s hottest adult entertainment spot. Brazen and formidable in designer T-shirts and motorcycle boots, he seems unflappable whether he’s making his rounds through the decadent decor of the Tunnel, or whipping through the desert heat on his bike. But inside he is a shattered man, desperate to understand what unconditional love from a woman feels like.

Hiding the effects of his emotionally stunted youth behind a gritty persona, and keeping his fractured soul buried deep while seeking out his baser instincts, Asher is convinced he is man enough to leave the past in the past. The only clue to his broken soul is his deep-seated need to provide safety and a good life for emotionally damaged women within the glamorous walls of his strip club.

Fooling himself that he deserves little in life, Asher keeps his big heart tightly guarded with everyone but Sienna Flower, his friend, business partner, and headliner. Until, that is, the night he runs into his childhood friend, Natalie Parker. While trolling a rival strip club, perusing their offerings for his own personal pleasure, he collides with his past. Coming face-to-face with a woman he only knew as a girl, he’s shaken when he finds the dark-haired beauty in a precarious position. Now all grown up, she’s a hardened soul who reminds him of where he came from, and stirs within him the need to protect yet another woman.

Known as Nat to most everyone, Natalie is a single mom to Quinn. But when she’s under the bright spotlights in a thong, she’s known as Natasha or Nataleigh Dallas. A girl who once had everything going for her, she’s now a jaded stripper with only room for her son in her life, and has erected impenetrable barriers around her heart. The strength of those walls is challenged the night a man she has known since childhood steamrolls his way back into her life, flashing those smoky-gray eyes that have always melted her. A man she has loved from afar since she was a young girl, one who set fire to her walls, burning deeper, setting everything ablaze––smoldering her.

Asher and Natalie, two people who are equally tormented by their own demons, set out to rescue each other as part-time lovers in a torrid, desperate workplace affair. Thinking they can remain friends while keeping their hearts at a safe distance, they find themselves at odds when their situation morphs into a messy, tangled mess.

Ripping free of each other proves impossible as they learn that the very web that connects them goes much deeper than they ever expected.

Over at my other site, Back'nGrooveMom, I write pretty serious stuff. A blog mostly centered around the crazy lives of women, moms, and wives, and how we look for balance. Typically, we are unsuccessful.
Anyway, when I decided to release Electrified (The Electric Tunnel)
or actually well before that, I went back and forth on using my real name or a pen name. As you can see, I went with the former over the latter.

Recently, most of the conversations I've had start and end with "Aren't you so embarrassed to release such a steamy read with your name."

The answer is short: NO.

No way, nope.

Part of my mission over at Back'nGrooveMom or anywhere else I write––Huffington Post, Modern Mom, even StartUpNation––has always been at the core of whatever role we are holding is this: We are women, and part of being a woman is doing what makes us feel good. So, if you like romance, read it. Devour it in any way you like.

The best part of releasing the book has been the PM's and texts I have received. They have made me laugh, cry, smile and feel light in a time I don't think I normally would!

Can they have sex soon?

Love it. Ur a dirty wh#@$

I'm in love with Carson.

Shhh, I'm with Carson right now.

...and the best: [My college-aged daughter] said she can totally see how you write that stuff by looking at you.

OMG. So, maybe a little embarrassed by that last one, but honestly thanks to all of you who have messaged me nice things and reviewed the book. love, R

Me: Mom, she’s a fellow blogger, writer who read my book and she liked it so much, she read it straight through in one sitting. It was a good cry.

My Mom: Well, how did she get the book? Is it out?

Me: No, not yet. She got an advanced copy for review purposes.

My Mom: What do you mean?

Me: Well, I have these advanced review copies for bloggers, avid readers/recommenders, and such to read early, help get the ball rolling, stir the media. You know, when you think I am just f-ing around on Facebook? I’m doing a little work.

My Mom: What about family? Do I get a copy?

I think: You don’t have a kindle, nook or the like. Plus, it is a bit dirty. Okay, a lot dirty.

I say: Definitely. Of course, mom. You can proof my paperback copy.

The truth of the matter is, I’ve been dragging my feet a little in putting up my debut novel. I’m fucking petrified. Scared to death. Not about the dirty part. Everyone knows I can be a bit naughty.

I’m afraid of the whole thing. The sum of parts…is greater…

Writing a fiction novel has been a lifelong goal of mine, and now I wrote one. I don’t know if anyone will like it (especially my mom), and it is frightening.

So, the few of you who have read advanced copies and sent me kind words, I can’t thank you enough.

I have studied the calendar to find the most perfect time to slap the book up on the internetz, and there are so many awesome, well-established, better-than-me authors releasing today, tomorrow, next week, but I have to bite the bullet.

Electrified will be live sometime in the next few days (4/30/14 or 5/1/14) –– mostly determined by my upload capabilities, and let me say this: Thanks in case I forget to say it later.

Thanks for everything, nothing, whatever.

To make sure you are alerted to when the links are live, you can like here.

It was his own damn fault he was so desperate for a female’s attention or touch. He was the one tied in knots over a stripper—a beautiful woman with supple curves, all the right moves, and bluer-than-blue eyes so deep they revealed she was actually much more than who she appeared to be onstage.

A woman who was completely inaccessible to him and untouchable to everyone. Yet he was so hung up on her, he was about to head up to his hotel room by his lonesome without any intention of trying to find another woman or even take care of himself.

Carson shook his head, annoyed at himself and confused by his current disinterest in pursuing anything female. He knew it bore some type of significance. A meaning, perhaps, that he shouldn’t ignore.

My novel is a bit naughty. Actually, not as much as book 2 (preview included), but dirty nonetheless, and for a while, I was thinking my mom may be the only person who buys my book. Except, do I want her to read it? Yesterday, someone asked her about the book and her thoughts, and she BLUSHED.

Let's just say this...my mom is not going to need to wear rouge for a while.

In the meantime, I cannot stop loving and looking at my cover thanks to Sarah over Okay. Yeah, she's ignoring my IM's and all because she is SICK of me, but I don't care. She did a bang out job on this one, and she's stuck with me. forever.

....I've been holed up with edits, putting the finishing touches on Sienna and Carson's story, and I haven't been able to even dream about writing anything else.
In celebration of my FIRST manuscript heading for FINAL edits, I wanted to share another little teaser (cover reveal and links coming soon).

Meet Sienna - "Her curves and long lashes tease and taunt from her very own billboard where the desert meets the Las Vegas Strip. She’s the hottest stripper in town, known for her sultry and indecent moves coupled with her virginal eyes."

Down to her bra and panties, Sienna strutted to the front of the platform. She tugged her hair loose from the elastic band that held it, while bending over to shake her locks loose. When she flipped back up, hand to hip, dancing suggestively, swaying her middle while letting her hair fall down her back, she saw him.

He was staring. Not gawking or watching awkwardly, but gazing possessively at her. A mysterious warmth flooded her body, seeping out from her veins to her muscles, skin, and most private parts, making her want to touch, feel, and gaze openly.

That was all she could handle. Sienna turned and went back up the pole to finish the song, avoiding looking at the floor. She couldn’t stand another second of the heat between their gazes.

Twisting and wrapping her lean body around the pole, never breaking a seductive smile, Sienna had the crowd twisted in lust. She could feel it in the air. It was heavy; blanketing the audience in a fever. Unable to cool down, the crowd’s only choice was to take in more sensuality.

At the end of the song, Sienna didn’t wait to see if the man she’d already spent too much time thinking about left. She did a quick spin around, giving the crowd one more long look at her butt, blew kisses to her fans, and sashayed off the stage.

Carson Graham shifted into fourth gear as he hightailed it away from the club toward his hotel. Why did he keep coming back to Vegas? Who the hell knows. If there was one thing he didn't have any trouble finding or getting, it was willing women.

He knew women weren't really “things.” They were interesting, often complicated creatures, and he both appreciated and respected them. He just happened to like women in his bed who came with no strings. It was the twenty-first century, after all, and there were plenty of women who liked that kind of deal.

He had never settled down, and he sure as hell wasn't about to start now. At closer to forty years old than thirty-five, he was thinking the bachelor life suited him just fine. Or maybe it was that he only deserved the single life. His particular circumstances hadn't exactly set him up for success in the relationship department.Picking up a little speed, he changed course and steered toward the mountains, needing more time to clear his head.

It would be great to be on his motorcycle right now, to be able to lean into the steep and winding curves, but it was back in his garage on the East Coast, grounded—just like his life at the moment. The sports car he'd rented would have to do.

As he shifted the engine into fifth gear the car jetted forward, allowing the tension to bleed from him with the increased RPM. He was trying to drive away from the pull as fast he could…the pull coming from an insanely gorgeous stripper he was lusting after in a big way.

There was something magnetic about her, dragging him in deeper and deeper. More than her sleek, toned body and her sensual moves when she wrapped herself around the pole, there was a draw deeper than the physical. Carson wasn't a hard-up kind of guy. He never got like this over a woman. Ever.

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